MARK WAITE / PVT The blast of fireworks above Petrack Park was viewed by Pahrump residents and visitors Sunday evening, topped off with a roaring, rumbling crescendo of multi-colored explosions. Tonight, the Pahrump Nugget is scheduled to chime in with its own display. CHRISTINA EICHELKRAUT / PVT John O'Brien, head pyro-technician of Zambelli Fireworks Manufacturing Corporation, holds up a fireworks shell dedicated to Jose Alphonso Roybal, a World War II veteran suffering from accelerated Alzheimer's disease. Advertisement

"I promised people it'll be a loud show, and it's going to be a loud show," John O'Brien, head pyro-technitian of Zambelli Fireworks Manufacturing Corporation said. "If they don't hear it in Vegas they're deaf."

Mission accomplished.

The fireworks that went off over Petrack Park Sunday night weren't just loud, they were huge.

As promised back in January, O'Brien delivered the biggest show in the state to Pahrump, including an additional $10,000 worth of specialty fireworks that O'Brien ordered (in addition to the town's order) "to wow this audience."

The crowds settled on the grass found themselves immersed in a cacaphony of color and sound for 24 minutes and 30 seconds, and judging by the cheers and applause that greeted the 24,000 shells that exploded during the last four minutes alone, it was well worth waiting for the sun to set.

If the show wasn't loud enough, then the last 30 seconds of over 5,000 titanium salutes were.

"This is the biggest show we've ever put on in Pahrump," O'Brien said.

And he's in a position to know, having been putting on the show for the last 18 of the 20 years it's taken place here.

It may have been over in a matter of minutes, but the show was actually the culmination of what O'Brien called "a long four days" for him and his 16-member crew.

That's because, though it's often times forgotten in the midst of all the pretty lights, it takes a lot more to put on a good fireworks show than just lighting a few fuses.

And the work still wasn't quite done at 6:30 p.m. Sunday, when the sun's heat was still putting up a fight against the impending cool evening air.

O'Brien and his crew were still hard at work getting ready for the big show scheduled for nine, laying out and connecting cables to the long row of wooden crates, holding long, black canisters, neatly arranged and holding the 16,000 queues, or firing points, that would later explode in the sky.

Every few sections of fireworks had an extinguisher standing in front of it, a quiet reminder that while fireworks are fun, they're still incendiary.

A second console was hooked up to the set pieces, or the displays that alight while remaining fixed on the ground.

This year, they included an entire wall of red, white, and blue, a literally blazing 21-foot Old Glory that alighted to start the show, with "Pahrump" literally in lights.

In addition, in keeping with the film "Ghostrider", and the symbolism behind it, a cowboy with a lariat and a bull were also blazing away, complete with smoke being snorted through the bull's nostrils.

Those took two days alone for the crew to build, because color is added by small, separately colored pieces that glow when lit, each individually and painstakingly attached to the frame.

Then there's the script, which includes the choreography of the fireworks and music, as well as the parts of the show that were simulcast on KNYE, Pahrump's local radio station.

The plot and purpose of the show, and indeed the entire Freedom Festival, are the main point for O'Brien.

"This show is for all the veterans and the people who are fighting in the Middle East right now," O'Brien explained.

Each of the fireworks was set to go off in conjunction with music, choreographed by Gabe Muniz, and John Wayne's explanation of both "Taps" and the "The Star-Spangled Banner."

No one was going to forget the real point of Independence Day on O'Brien's watch.

"This show is a celebration of the history of our flag and the history of our nation," O'Brien explained.

And the veterans who gave their lives so the nation has a reason to celebrate are honored in their own special way.

Various "shells" are dedicated to individual veterans, with their names written on the brown-paper wrapping.

As an example, O'Brien held up a shell inscribed with Jose Alphonso Roybal, a World War II veteran who is currently suffering from accelerated Alzheimer's disease.

"This is an example of people who died for our country," O'Brien said. "This festival is for people like Jose."